If they are going to fulfil their rich promise this season – and Champions League qualification now appears to be the very least this frighteningly fertile and creative group can achieve – they will have to do in spite of defending which would raise eyebrows in the I Zingari League.

Since they last dropped points – courtesy of a misplaced pass – at The Hawthorns three weeks ago, the Reds have collected nine points from three matches.

But they’ve conceded six goals in doing so – some in embarrassing fashion.

A comical own goal at Fulham, players colliding with each other in the same match, a penalty against Arsenal – but those incidents were paragons of composure compared to yesterday’s penalty box bumper car collisions.

To describe the panic-stricken shambles as Keystone Cops defending would be an insult to Mack Sennett.

From first minute to last, Liverpool made error after error after error.

Some of it was pure slapstick. But no-one was laughing.

Glen Johnson sliced a clearance – straight into Martin Skrtel.

Kolo Toure – brought on for Daniel Agger after 61 minutes in a bizarre bid to settle things down – passed straight into touch.

Simon Mignolet carried the ball out of his own area.

Jon Flanagan threw the ball straight to Jose Canas.

And that was all in one five minute spell when Liverpool were attempting to ‘see out’ the match.

Such was the comic nature of the defending that the Reds had to rely on the SAS to rescue them again.

And Sturridge and Suarez proved as reliable as ever – even if the relationship is all one way.

Suarez clipped another outstanding cross onto his teammate's head – the fifth goal he has directly created for his strike partner this season, and his 18th in total.

The last goal Sturridge created for Suarez was at Stoke in January. The pass across goal for Jordan Henderson’s sublime finish yesterday was his sixth assist of the season.

Suarez's reaction to Sturridge, head down, trying to chisel a way through to the Kop goal on his own with his teammate and the whole Kop Stand screaming for a pass, was telling.

While Sturridge turned away, oblivious to the frustration he had created, Suarez howled in anguish and pointed to his forehead to clearly suggest that his partner wasn’t using his own.

The decision to withdraw Sturridge 10 minutes later for Victor Moses may not have been entirely unrelated – although manager and player did shake hands harmoniously …after Sturridge had milked every last drop of applause from the crowd.

Jonjo Shelvey also received warm applause for appearing to apologise after scoring a goal to compare with Henderson’s sublime strike.

But the home supporters weren’t always as charitable.

The cry from the Paddock seats when Joe Allen trotted on for Raheem Sterling early in the second half was audible.

“You're messing!” was the anguished reaction from one fan.

Brendan Rodgers wasn’t.

And the decision showed that playing Football Manager on the PC is very different to the real thing.

Allen did more than most to knit things back together with a precise, penetrating and intelligent cameo.

The problem for Rodgers is that to introduce Allen from the start would mean sacrificing Henderson – and his performance yesterday was excellent. Again.

It is still one of football’s great imponderables that the Reds boss once wanted to swap the midfielder for Clint Dempsey.

At the time he wanted more goals in his squad, but Henderson is now starting to add that to his repertoire.

His first was a sugar-sweet strike which deceived Michel Vorm by arcing into the goalkeeper's top right-hand corner, with the keeper anticipating the ball curling the opposite way.

But his decisive second was a real poacher's strike, anticipating the spill from Suarez's shot and bundling in at the second attempt.

It was the a crucial matchwinner.

The two matches which came to symbolise Kevin Keegan’s Toon raiders were 4-3 defeats – at Anfield.

Liverpool, however, celebrated a 4-3 win.

They may need a few more between now and May of they are going to do what Newcastle couldn’t – and win a League title in swashbuckling, gung-ho fashion.